Louisiana State and Southern University Authorize Medical Marijuana Production

If they raise the funds necessary to build a dedicated facility, they could be netting profit by 2020.

In 2016, it goes without saying that cannabis has been solidified as and will continue to be a cash crop. While it has been consumed for personal euphoria for quite some time, it has been found to be just as substantial medicinally. For both of these reasons, earlier this year, the state of Louisiana signed a momentous medical marijuana bill that cements them as the first of the southern states to implement an attainable medical cannabis program.

To carry out this plan, Southern University and Louisiana State University–two state institutions–were recruited and given the green light to begin researching and cultivating medical marijuana, to later be distributed to state-sanctioned dispensaries.

The cost of a facility to handle such a task has been estimated to cost upwards of $10 million by Louisiana State University. As a result of the hefty bill, LSU’s AgCenter will present a proposal for their facility to investors at a public forum held in the school’s Digital Media Center Theatre on October 28.

The plan they intend to present includes cost projections, estimates of the potential financial windfall, and further details on the expenses for the facility. It is important to note that despite cultivation and research taking place as early as 2017, there will be no foreseeable sales until 2018 and revenue may not exceed expenses until 2020. Talk about a slow burner.

For now, we’ll have to wait and see if LSU will garner the funding they’re looking for in order get the initiative rolling. There are a number of factors that come into play when it comes to state versus federal laws and regulations because the LSU AgCenter is federally funded. However with medicinal cannabis being seen as a new and exciting frontier, in addition to its benefits to patients suffering from a bevy of ailments, what happens next with LSU and Southern University could be game changer.

With the potential for the state of the Louisiana–one currently dealing with a significant budget crisis–to rake in a cool $200-300 million if all goes well, this seems like a no-brainer.

published on October 20, 2016

Greg Hurdle

Greg Hurdle is a writer based in Brooklyn, NY. He's written for Mass Appeal, Green Label, and Complex Media. He aims to redefine "fire content."